I have always admired Sam Rivers. He was adaptable as he was individual. Most notable for me was his work on Dave Holland's Conference of the Birds, and his own Impulse release Sizzle. But also his incredible, forward looking records on Blue Note. Particularly notable was Fuchsia Swing Song, which is discussed by Ethan Iverson here.

John Chamberlain and Helen Frankenthaler were both artists in the Abstract Expressionist vein. Post war creatives that were part of the scene that brought Modernism to its apex. I had the great pleasure of spending hours upon hours with Chamberlain's work when I was employed at Dia:Beacon, an intensely large contemporary art space devoted to large scale, conceptual, pop, earth, minimalist Art and beyond.

Chamberlain took the aesthetics of Pollock or De Kooning and gave them substance as three dimensional objects using repurposed metals as his medium. Frankenthaler, an artist I must admit don't know as much about, focused on color field arrangements using organic shapes and elements in her canvas paintings.

Sam Rivers, John Chamberlain ,and Helen Frankenthaler were great individuals among individuals. In a world that ultimately seems more and more collective in the creative realm these three have left an invaluable impact on sculpture, painting, and sound.

December 14, 2011

Greensleeves by John Coltrane on GroovesharkI thought I'd return with another gift guide intended to those looking to score points as gift givers. If that special Jazz fan in your life is like me, most likely they are super picky. Take a look at 2010's Gift Guide; and here are my 2011 recommendations:

1. The Jazz ExperienceI'm fortunate to have an older brother that's into giving experiences rather than material items. This worked out because it often involved live performances. Get tickets to a big headliner strolling through your area, or maybe a night at a local jazz club accompanied by a stellar meal and sociable libations. Not to mention the Portland Jazz Festival is just around the corner for those in the Portland area.

2. Better HeadphonesMore and more we're enjoying our music on the go. Good headwear is key for grooving to those remastered albums. Siege Audio, Urbanears, and Dre ($$). Check out this Frog Design FrogMob to see what more folks are into.

3. Destination: OutMP3 StoreHad this on my list last year and the D:O store is awesome enough to repeat. These super limited and unique FMP releases are absolute treasures.

4. Sony Music's PopMarket.comComplete Album CollectionsLet's face it, if they're into Jazz they're most likely a completist. Record collecting is like Pokemon, you have to have them all. Now available are complete album collections from Columbia and RCA Records spanning from the 1950s to the past decade. From Miles Davis, Dexter Gordon, and Wayne Shorter to Nina Simone, Return to Forever, and Stan Getz. A little something for everyone.

5. Spotify Premium Membership

Spotify is insanely awesome. A premium subscription gives ad-free, high quality, online and offline listening. I've been obsessively digging through many of the rarer Avant-Garde Jazz albums available.

That's about all I have for now. Anything else I think of I'll add to the list. Be sure to have a killer Holiday Season!

________________I sometimes blog on my iPad using BlogPress. If you see the below signature attached to any post, it pretty much means I'm trying to justify any typos, weird capitalization, or awkward formatting issues.

December 5, 2011

Last night we witnessed the live chops of clarinet great, Perry Robinson. One of my favorite albums I own is William Parker's Clarinet Trio which features Robinson on their release entitled Bob's Pink Cadillac. Along with a solid discography as a leader, Perry Robinson has contributed to many significant recordings as a sideman; Henry Grimes The Call (an album I always tend to leave a copy in my car), Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra, Archie Shepp's Mama Too Tight, Burton Greenes' Klezmokum band, among other notable recordings.

Perry Robinson was presented in a quartet alongside Portland's premier Avant-Garde drummer Tim DuRoche, stellar bassist Andre St. James, and Seattle's Marc Smason on trombone. We were tucked down in the cozy basement of The Blue Monk. A Jazz club with a speakeasy feel, it's one of the only places in town one can sip a Trappist Ales and tap their feet to some of the best live Jazz around. It's truly an authentic Jazz experience with candlelit round tables and small booth seating offering an intimate climate between musicians and audience. The Blue Monk's Ninkasi Presents Sunday Night Jazz even has a hostess MC, Mary-Sue Tobin, that reminded me of Alfred Lion's wife, Ruth Mason, from her introduction on Donald Byrd's Live at the Half Note.

The piano-less quartet (everyone knows my favorite form of Jazz group) offered a range of Klezmer inspired Jazz tunes to numbers that were amoebic and free in nature. Music that resembled the intricate horn work of Anthony Braxton's compositions, or the artfully crafted work of Roswell Rudd (New York Art Quartet springs to mind). It was some of the best live music I have seen all year. Robinson's tone was out of this world. He seemed in the moment yet he had full control of his clarinet. Andre St. James was powerful on bass, with amazing arco playing alongside a duo performance with Tim DuRoche. Marc Smason appeared to lead the group, directing how each number was arranged.

I feel honored to not only been able to see Perry Robinson perform live, but to see him in such a low key environment. I'm constantly reminded that #jazzlives.

#thisshapejazz on Instagram

Writings about different albums primarily from the 1960s of the avant-garde. However, I may touch on titles pertaining to bop, hard-bop, soul jazz and post bop, as well as contemporary avant-garde releases.